Overview

The URC will identify areas of strength within Faculties and work together to recommend how these might move forward in support of McMaster's priorities.

Overview of the University Research Council

Forward with Integrity challenged the McMaster community to think creatively, originally and innovatively to bring about the best results from our endeavours. The Research Task Force identified that our University's research strength contributes to the foundation that supports McMaster's mission, and recognizes the importance of innovation to McMaster's research enterprise. Critical to this foundation is the involvement of a community of support to help move McMaster's research initiatives forward.

In recognition of the importance of research within Business, Engineering, Health Sciences, Humanities, Science and Social Sciences, each Faculty has established an Associate Dean of Research, whose portfolio includes the furthering of their research endeavours. In addition to connecting with researchers in their Faculties, the Associate Deans meet together to discuss areas of common interest. Forward With Integrity afforded us the opportunity to formalize this group into a University Research Council (URC).

The URC will identify areas of strength within Faculties and work together to recommend how these might move forward in support of McMaster's priorities. In today's research environment, the need to employ inter-disciplinary approaches to solving complex problems is clear. We anticipate that a significant priority for the Council will be the attainment of research excellence through the establishment of multi-disciplinary research teams. Increasingly, partnership with other institutions and with other sectors will be critical to achieving a high level of success in research funding and research outcomes. With a deep knowledge of Faculty strengths and a high level of understanding of the synergies realized through partnership, the Council will be instrumental in supporting and promoting research excellence.

Composition of the URC

The Council will be chaired by the Vice-President, Research and will include the Associate Vice-President, Research; the Vice-Provost, International Affairs; the Assistant Vice-President, Research Partnerships; the Associate Deans, Research from each of the six Faculties; the University Librarian; and the Vice-Provost and Dean, Graduate Studies; Personnel from McMaster's Research Administration will also provide support and input; participants will include the President, McMaster Innovation Park (MIP); Assistant Vice-President, Research Administration; Director of the Research Office for Administration, Development and Support (ROADS); the Executive Director of the McMaster Industrial Liaison Office (MILO); the Director of Research Finance and Administration; the Director of Health Research Services; the Executive Director, Research and High Performance Computing and Special Advisor to the VP Research; the Manager, Research Communications; and the Manager, Prizes and Awards.